This week saw the founder of a publicly traded tech company stepping down from his job, while some startups raised Series A rounds to relocate to Boston and local accelerators made some moves: —Carbonite founder David Friend is leaving his job as president and CEO of the online computer backup company. Carbonite (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CARB]]) said … Continue reading “Boston Tech Roundup: Carbonite, BlueConic, CodeShip, Accelerators”
Category: National
MD Revolution Raises $7M for Web-based Health and Fitness Program
MD Revolution, a San Diego startup that has developed online technology to help people improve their health, says today it has closed on $7 million in a Series B round of funding. All of the funding came from individual investors, and the round brings total funding for the startup to $8 million, a spokeswoman said. … Continue reading “MD Revolution Raises $7M for Web-based Health and Fitness Program”
Pivothead Smart Glasses Offer New Point of View on Everyday Life
Think of the special occasions in life you want to capture on video. Like a birthday party, a trip to the beach, or a hike in the mountains. Now think about the compromises you have to make to record those moments. Sure, the days of bulky cameras are mostly gone, and the cameras on smartphones … Continue reading “Pivothead Smart Glasses Offer New Point of View on Everyday Life”
Former Wisconsin Gov. Thompson Wants to Form Angel Fund
Former Wisconsin governor Tommy Thompson has aspirations for starting an early-stage investment fund—that’s if he can achieve a few exits this year with his current personal investments. Thompson made the comments Thursday afternoon at a luncheon in Wauwatosa, WI, hosted by the Wisconsin Innovation Network, an arm of the Madison-based Wisconsin Technology Council. Thompson held … Continue reading “Former Wisconsin Gov. Thompson Wants to Form Angel Fund”
How to Find the Right Chief Technology Officer
Last year, the Kauffman Foundation named four cities in Colorado (Boulder, Denver, Fort Collins/Loveland and Colorado Springs) to the Top 10 List for best cities for startups. With so many entrepreneurs looking to found startups—and because of the strong technology emphasis in today’s economy—I’m sometimes asked for advice on how to find a technical co-founder … Continue reading “How to Find the Right Chief Technology Officer”
Retrophin Shares Boom Following Manchester Pharma Buyout
Shares of Retrophin on Thursday soared after the company cut a deal to acquire privately-held Manchester Pharmaceuticals and, along with it, a drug that’s long been prescribed off-label for a rare inherited disease. Late Wednesday, New York-based Retrophin (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RTRX]]) agreed to pay $29.5 million up front, and $62.5 million total, to snap up Fort … Continue reading “Retrophin Shares Boom Following Manchester Pharma Buyout”
Bit9 Buys Carbon Black, Gets $38M to Try to Win Security Arms Race
2014 is shaping up to be the year of cybersecurity. Or lack thereof. It seems every week we hear about a new data breach or major hacking operation. And every week there seems to be a new tech company trying to solve these problems. Bit9 is not one of them. The Waltham, MA-based company has … Continue reading “Bit9 Buys Carbon Black, Gets $38M to Try to Win Security Arms Race”
Precision Medicine Healthcare Summit, Feb. 21: Saver Rate Ends Today
We’re just a week away from “Precision Medicine to Precision Management,” where we bring together healthcare investors, entrepreneurs, and innovators in an exclusive, invitation-only discussion that brings together advances in Big Data, mobile technology, and genomics. Healthcare—how it’s developed, delivered, and consumed—is being transformed from the lab bench to the ER. Yet one question that … Continue reading “Precision Medicine Healthcare Summit, Feb. 21: Saver Rate Ends Today”
Techstars’ Troy Henikoff: Wisconsin Startups’ Problems No Different
When I talked with Techstars Chicago’s managing director Troy Henikoff in January about his upcoming visit to Milwaukee, he readily admitted that he didn’t know as much about Wisconsin’s tech startup scene as he would like. I caught up with Henikoff again Wednesday night at the event hosted by Startup Milwaukee to ask him what … Continue reading “Techstars’ Troy Henikoff: Wisconsin Startups’ Problems No Different”
Concert Pharma Heads to Nasdaq, Prices IPO at $14 Per Share
What’s it worth to add a little deuterium to drugs to boost their abilities? In Wall Street’s eyes, about $14 per share. Lexington, MA-based Concert Pharmaceuticals will debut on the Nasdaq today after pricing its IPO at the top of its projected range of $14 per share. The company sold 6 million shares in the … Continue reading “Concert Pharma Heads to Nasdaq, Prices IPO at $14 Per Share”
Avalara Adds $30M to Fuel Sales-Tax Software Growth
Sales-tax software might sound like a boring business. But don’t tell that to the folks at Avalara. The nearly 10-year-old company, based a short ferry ride away from Seattle on Bainbridge Island, embraces the normally staid world of e-commerce backend services and enterprise software with a fun-loving culture that includes a company “tiki bar” and … Continue reading “Avalara Adds $30M to Fuel Sales-Tax Software Growth”
Swirl Rolls Out `Indoor GPS’ at Alex and Ani Stores Nationwide
It’s one of those smartphone-era technology breakthroughs that you’re constantly hearing will happen very soon: an “indoor GPS” system for retailers, allowing shopkeepers to send their would-be customers digital coupons and other goodies tailored to the place they’re standing in the store. Brick-and-mortar retailers would probably like to start using these systems if they could … Continue reading “Swirl Rolls Out `Indoor GPS’ at Alex and Ani Stores Nationwide”
Illumina, Yuri Milner Open Genomics Startup Accelerator in SF
Entrepreneurs who want to use high-powered DNA sequencers for, say, a new way to diagnose cancer, are in much the same boat as infotech entrepreneurs a decade ago. Before they can even develop a product, they need to raise at least a couple million bucks to buy a bunch of fancy tools, on top of … Continue reading “Illumina, Yuri Milner Open Genomics Startup Accelerator in SF”
Lovelines Looking to Create Mobile Platform for Interactive Stories
Love is in the air. Men are falling for their operating systems, Fifty Shades of Grey is on its way to the silver screen, and women are finding romantic escapes through texting. This Valentine’s Day tech story is brought to you by Pink Kiwi, the Boston-area makers of a new iOS app called Lovelines. It’s … Continue reading “Lovelines Looking to Create Mobile Platform for Interactive Stories”
Qualcomm Ventures’ QPrize Contest Pulls in VCs, Especially Overseas
It’s been a few weeks since Qualcomm Ventures kicked off the fourth edition of its international QPrize competition, an initiative that seems to be taking on a life of its own. The contest began in 2009 as a kind of global hunt for innovation—a way to find the next generation of promising, early stage companies … Continue reading “Qualcomm Ventures’ QPrize Contest Pulls in VCs, Especially Overseas”
Pharmacyclics, J&J Get FDA Nod for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Drug
One of the important new medicines for blood cancer just got approved by the FDA for a large new group of patients. Sunnyvale, CA-based Pharmacyclics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PCYC]]) and its partner Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: [[ticker:JNJ]]) won clearance today from the FDA to start marketing ibrutinib (Imbruvica) as a new therapy for patients with chronic lymphocytic … Continue reading “Pharmacyclics, J&J Get FDA Nod for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Drug”
Flipping the Flipped Classroom
Two of the hot topics in education in the last few years have been Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC’s) and the flipped classroom. I’ve been experimenting with both of them. What I’ve learned (besides being able to use the word “pedagogy” in a sentence) is 1) assigning students lectures as homework doesn’t guarantee the students … Continue reading “Flipping the Flipped Classroom”
Miscarriage Mysteries Create New Market for Natera
[Corrected 2/12/14, see below] Was it that airline flight? The vitamin supplements? The hair dye? Women who have miscarried may comb their memories for reasons, and the grieving process can last more than a decade, says Barbara Pettersen, clinical director for San Carlos, CA-based diagnostics company Natera. Most of the time, miscarriages are the result of … Continue reading “Miscarriage Mysteries Create New Market for Natera”
Welltok Raises $22M, Starts Working with IBM Watson Supercomputer
Denver-based healthcare tech startup Welltok announced today it has closed a $22.1 million Series C round and will be working with IBM to develop new products powered by the IBM Watson supercomputer. The new financing brings the money raised by Welltok to more than $40 million since April, a release from the company said. The … Continue reading “Welltok Raises $22M, Starts Working with IBM Watson Supercomputer”
WTIA Buys Troubled NWEN in Nonprofit Consolidation
The Washington Technology Industry Association, the state’s top trade group for tech companies, is taking over another nonprofit that serves tech entrepreneurs. The WTIA announced today that it’s acquiring the Northwest Entrepreneur Network, which laid off its director last month as it sought to restructure. The deal involved some payment, but the exact figures were not … Continue reading “WTIA Buys Troubled NWEN in Nonprofit Consolidation”
With New App, H2Oscore Brings Smart Meter Reading to the People
Milwaukee technology startup H2Oscore is launching a beta version of a new app this week that will allow homeowners and businesses to take monitoring their water and electricity use into their own hands. The software performs data analytics similar to H2Oscore’s current Web dashboard for tracking water use, but the new “MeterHero” app cuts municipal … Continue reading “With New App, H2Oscore Brings Smart Meter Reading to the People”
Third Rock’s Voyager Hunts For CNS Disorders With Gene Therapy
Several biotechs have tried over the years to come up with a way to reverse the course of crippling central nervous system disorders like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a.k.a. Lou Gehrig’s Disease), only to see their efforts fall short. Now, Third Rock Ventures will try to see if gene therapy can succeed where so many drugs … Continue reading “Third Rock’s Voyager Hunts For CNS Disorders With Gene Therapy”
Flexion Prices IPO at $13, Heads to Nasdaq Tomorrow
Flexion Therapeutics is set to become the latest biotech to debut on the Nasdaq. The Burlington, MA-based company, which is developing a group of osteoarthritis drugs, priced its IPO late Tuesday, becoming the 15th biotech to do so just a month into 2014. Flexion sold 5 million shares in the offering at $13 apiece, raising … Continue reading “Flexion Prices IPO at $13, Heads to Nasdaq Tomorrow”
Baird Venture Capital Group Raising $150M For Fourth Fund
The venture capital arm of Milwaukee-based Robert W. Baird & Co. intends to raise $150 million for a fourth fund, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel first reported the news. Baird has yet to collect any of the money, according to the document filed Friday with … Continue reading “Baird Venture Capital Group Raising $150M For Fourth Fund”
Blue Ocean Challenge’s $250K Prize Draws 16 Startups to Fort Collins
What does it take to get entrepreneurs from around the country to come to Fort Collins, a college town in northern Colorado, for a business competition? Apparently the chance to win a $250,000 grand prize and receive mentoring from the people who made OtterBox a leading brand in mobile phone accessories will do the trick. … Continue reading “Blue Ocean Challenge’s $250K Prize Draws 16 Startups to Fort Collins”
Jason Mendelson Returns to Detroit to Talk Startup Ecosystems
When Jason Mendelson delivered the keynote speech at the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium two years ago, he made it clear he was feeling bullish about Detroit’s future prospects. Mendelson is a metro Detroit native and a University of Michigan alum who went on to co-found the Foundry Group, a highly successful venture fund based in … Continue reading “Jason Mendelson Returns to Detroit to Talk Startup Ecosystems”
After $2M Round, San Diego’s Quippi Aims to Disrupt Money Transfer
Each year, an estimated 6 million American households send money abroad to help support their families and friends around the world. While major banks and companies like Western Union, MoneyGram, Xoom, PayPal, and Viamericas offer a variety of money transfer services at widely varying rates, Michael Aleles says he sees an opportunity to provide an … Continue reading “After $2M Round, San Diego’s Quippi Aims to Disrupt Money Transfer”
Novelos Becomes Cellectar, Returns to Madison Roots
Novelos Therapeutics today announced a corporate name change that returns to the roots of the Madison, WI, company. Novelos (OTCQX: [[ticker:NVLT]]) is now Cellectar Biosciences and will trade under the stock ticker symbol (OTCQX: [[ticker:CLRB]]) effective Wednesday. The new name should be familiar to those who follow Wisconsin’s life sciences industry. Novelos was formerly based … Continue reading “Novelos Becomes Cellectar, Returns to Madison Roots”
Algae Biomass Advocates Push Past Exuberance, Aim for Sustainability
Ice shut down Houston for the second time in five days recently, a weather event that, in its sheer strangeness, seemed a fitting backdrop for a gathering of alternative fuel advocates in Big Oil’s backyard. I drove on an unusually empty Interstate 45 to Montgomery, TX, about 60 miles north of Houston, where the leaders … Continue reading “Algae Biomass Advocates Push Past Exuberance, Aim for Sustainability”
PlaceIQ Lands $15M Round, Will Scale Up Its Ad Intelligence Software
Knowing where consumers tend to roam can give marketers an edge. So it’s little surprise that New York-based PlaceIQ is growing fast and raising money. The startup’s software gives marketers insight on the places people tend to visit thanks to data gathered anonymously from mobile devices. Such information, says PlaceIQ CEO and co-founder Duncan McCall, … Continue reading “PlaceIQ Lands $15M Round, Will Scale Up Its Ad Intelligence Software”
Age of Cybereason: Security Startup Out to Stop Hackers in the Act
Another month, another startup helping to keep Boston on the map as an epicenter of cybersecurity expertise. From CounterTack to Cyber-Ark to Co3, many companies have been making news in recent months. This time it’s Cybereason, an Israeli-born startup that has set up headquarters in Cambridge, MA, with help from Charles River Ventures, which put … Continue reading “Age of Cybereason: Security Startup Out to Stop Hackers in the Act”
From Oakland to Milwaukee, Molding Black Youths Into Entrepreneurs
Even with a flurry of national news coverage, there are some questions about the shooting death of Trayvon Martin that might never be answered. This much is clear: the confrontation that took the Florida teenager’s life was a drawn-out encounter that could have been cut off several times. If Martin had an easy way to … Continue reading “From Oakland to Milwaukee, Molding Black Youths Into Entrepreneurs”
Space Toilets, Astronoms: Houston Hackers Join to Innovate for NASA
It’s not a stretch to say that NASA is on the vanguard of innovation. Still, even an innovative pioneer occasionally could use a little help from friends. This past weekend, more than 100 hackers—including one man who came down to Houston from Michigan—spent 36 hours at Rice University’s BioScience Research Collaborative tackling challenges aimed at … Continue reading “Space Toilets, Astronoms: Houston Hackers Join to Innovate for NASA”
Look Out, Nest: Startups Go After Connected Devices
[Corrected 2/11/14, see below] Google’s recent purchase of Nest gave huge validation to the promise of the Internet of Things—a $3.2 billion endorsement. But if a $249 thermostat and $129 smoke and carbon monoxide detector (multiplied by all the bedrooms in your house, plus the kitchen) seem a little too inaccessible, or you’re not looking … Continue reading “Look Out, Nest: Startups Go After Connected Devices”
Benefit App Aims to Help Schools Make Fundraising “Frictionless”
Benefit, a startup based in Grand Rapids, MI, has created technology to disrupt a traditional method of school fundraising. With the SCRIP method, schools buy discounted gift cards and then sell them at a markup to parents, with the difference going toward the school. SCRIP does away with the old, cumbersome door-to-door pizza kit and … Continue reading “Benefit App Aims to Help Schools Make Fundraising “Frictionless””
New York Leads Boston in Tech Job Growth; Google, Wayfair at Top
Where is all the technology talent flowing in the Northeast? If you look at Internet and digital media companies, New York City has the edge over Boston at the moment. New York registered a 3.2 percent increase in those tech jobs last quarter, while job growth in Boston fell to 1.3 percent—the lowest it’s been … Continue reading “New York Leads Boston in Tech Job Growth; Google, Wayfair at Top”
Wisconsin Venture Debt Programs Need More Deals, Not More Capital
Venture debt represents a growing source of funds for early-stage technology companies, one that is encouraging banks and public entities to become more involved in startup funding. Wisconsin is no exception to this trend. The state’s venture debt programs committed $8.2 million in loans in 2013, representing a substantial upside to what was a down … Continue reading “Wisconsin Venture Debt Programs Need More Deals, Not More Capital”
The Young and Proven Biotech VCs From 2012. Where Are They Now?
One of the old saws in journalism is to “follow the money” when you’re looking for a story. But sometimes you learn even more by following the people. The people, in this case, are biotech venture capitalists. Regular readers of this column know that biotech VC has been going through a historic shakeout the last … Continue reading “The Young and Proven Biotech VCs From 2012. Where Are They Now?”
MakerBot Opens Innovation Centers, Bringing 3D Printers to Academia
Bre Pettis is starting to see more of his master plan come together. MakerBot Industries in Brooklyn announced Thursday it will hold a grand opening next week for its first innovation center, which was set up at SUNY New Paltz in New Paltz, NY. The company has outfitted the center with desktop 3D printers and … Continue reading “MakerBot Opens Innovation Centers, Bringing 3D Printers to Academia”
Austin’s Lumos Pharma Gets $14M for Creatine Disorder Therapy
A malfunctioned gene, a blocked pathway, and a lifetime of neurological and behavioral problems. That’s the reality for about 42,000 people in the U.S. with creatine transporter deficiency, a metabolic disorder people are born with. Austin, TX-based Lumos Pharma believes it has a therapy that could turn this debilitating disease into a more manageable condition. … Continue reading “Austin’s Lumos Pharma Gets $14M for Creatine Disorder Therapy”
Boston Tech Roundup: DataXu, Imprivata, Flashnotes
A few financing deals that percolated up around the Boston area this week: —Boston-based advertising software company DataXu has raised another $10 million and added a new board member. The new cash was revealed in an SEC filing this week, and the company confirmed to the Boston Business Journal that the money came from existing … Continue reading “Boston Tech Roundup: DataXu, Imprivata, Flashnotes”
East Coast Biotech Roundup: Genocea, Eleven, NIH/Pharma, & More
A couple of local biotechs this week didn’t find their entrée to the public markets so friendly. Meanwhile, Big Pharmas all over the place were banding together to share their resources and run trials together. Those stories and more below: —Cambridge, MA-based vaccine developer Genocea Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GNCA]]) was the first local biotech to price … Continue reading “East Coast Biotech Roundup: Genocea, Eleven, NIH/Pharma, & More”
How Do You Solve A Problem Like Samantha? The Lessons of “Her”
Warning: Extensive plot spoilers. Like any effective science fiction movie, Spike Jonze’s Her has sparked a lot of important conversation and criticism, about everything from user-interface design to misogyny in filmmaking. But the reviews I’ve read all seem to miss one key point. Considered as a product, not a person (and we’ll get back to … Continue reading “How Do You Solve A Problem Like Samantha? The Lessons of “Her””
San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Auspex, Biocept, Halozyme & More
There was a certain symmetry in the great circle of life that played out in San Diego’s life sciences industry over the past week, with two IPOs and two buyouts. Here are the details, along with the rest of the local life sciences news. —San Diego’s Auspex Pharmaceuticals priced its IPO at $12 a share, … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Auspex, Biocept, Halozyme & More”
Could Future Car2go Trips Take You to Bellevue in a Black Mercedes?
After a successful first year of service in Seattle, car2go—the pay-as-you-go, free-floating car rental service from German automaker Daimler AG—is researching the potential for expansion to the Eastside and a new business model that would appear to put it more directly in competition with the likes of Zipcar. The company, which rents the diminutive blue … Continue reading “Could Future Car2go Trips Take You to Bellevue in a Black Mercedes?”
Sometimes It Pays to Be A Jerk
The concepts in my Lean LaunchPad curriculum can be taught in a variety of classes–as an introduction to entrepreneurship all the way to a graduate level “capstone class.” I recently learned being tough when you select teams for a capstone class pays off for all involved. Here’s why. Our Lean LaunchPad class requires student teams … Continue reading “Sometimes It Pays to Be A Jerk”
Novelos Cancer Drug to Enter Phase II With $4M Investment
Novelos Therapeutics said today it will raise $4 million from investors that will allow the company to initiate a Phase II clinical trial of one of its cancer drugs. Madison, WI-based Novelos (OTCQX: [[ticker:NVLT]]) is developing compounds that either target and kill cancer cells or act as imaging agents for detecting cancer. Its drugs are … Continue reading “Novelos Cancer Drug to Enter Phase II With $4M Investment”
Twitter and Gnip Begin New Program to Help Researchers Use Big Data
The impact big data could have on the commercial world and industries like finance and advertising is well established, but it’s also changing the way social scientists, historians, and public health experts are studying the world. Access to Twitter’s (NYSE: [[ticker:TWTR]]) firehose of more than 500 million public tweets per day has helped researchers track … Continue reading “Twitter and Gnip Begin New Program to Help Researchers Use Big Data”
Ann Arbor’s 3D Biomatrix Clears Final Hurdle to Patent
Ann Arbor-based 3D Biomatrix, a life sciences company spun out of the University of Michigan in 2010, announced this week that it has received a notice of allowance from the U.S. patent office for the technology behind its Perfecta3D hanging drop plates, which are used by researchers to grow cells in culture. The notice of … Continue reading “Ann Arbor’s 3D Biomatrix Clears Final Hurdle to Patent”
3 Takeaways From Madison Startup Fair: More, Faster, Better
Usually it’s the job candidates who have to fight to stand out in discussions with potential employers at a job fair, not the other way around. But for tech startups operating with a lean staff and budget, trying to entice young talent when your booth is next to big names like Google and General Electric … Continue reading “3 Takeaways From Madison Startup Fair: More, Faster, Better”